


Keep Calm and Adopt More Cats

by Lalikaa



Series: Home is where our hearts are [2]
Category: Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood & Manga
Genre: F/M, Post-Series, seriously Al and Mei just have So Many Pets
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-17
Updated: 2017-08-17
Packaged: 2018-12-16 10:25:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,188
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11826792
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lalikaa/pseuds/Lalikaa
Summary: Al and Mei are living quite happily together (along with Xiao-Mei and their 9 pets) in an apartment in Central. “No Animals Allowed” isn’t an all-inclusive policy, right…?





	Keep Calm and Adopt More Cats

**Author's Note:**

> Ok, so I wrote this fic a year or so ago! It's set a few months after "Another Day, Another Stray". Al is 25, and Mei is around 22, by the way!

“ALPHONSE!” Mei burst through their front door with so much force that two of their cats, who’d been previously dozing on the couch in the living room, were startled awake and dashed off toward Al and Mei’s bedroom, while the framed picture of Xiao-Mei in the hall shook, nearly falling off the wall.

“Yes, darling?” Al responded, pausing his pancake-flipping to poke his head out of the kitchen. He was wearing the apron she’d sewed him for his birthday three years ago. It had mismatched flowers and butterflies all over it. Mei was a terrible seamstress, but Al liked the way her eyes lit up when he wore it.

“She’s HERE!”

Al almost dropped the spatula in panic. “Shit. I thought she wasn’t supposed to come ‘til next week…?”

“I thought so too!” Mei wailed. “But I just saw her! She was at Sarah’s place, so we have half an hour, tops.”

“I can’t believe this.”

“I know, I know. What are we going to do, we can’t have a repeat of last time! It was a total disaster!” Mei said, voice rising an octave.

“We just need to stay calm,” Al said reasonably. “We’ll just- SHIT SHIT SHIT!”

In a less dire situation Mei would’ve laughed as Al struggled to wrench the smoke alarm, which was now beeping loudly, out of the ceiling. She did still mutter out a “ _hypocrite_ ,” while she strode over to help her panicked fiancé fan out the smoke that was now curling around their kitchen. Al attempted to salvage the pancakes, but they were beyond saving.

“They were… so perfect. Angels wept while I was making these, Mei. They were- they were going to be so amazing and delicious.” His voice wobbled a bit.

Before her fiancé could start sobbing over breakfast (which happened more often than Mei thought was possible, but after all these years Al would still sometimes become understandably emotional over the taste of food), Mei stood on her tiptoes and grabbed his shoulders. “AL. FOCUS.”

“Right, right. Ok,” Al said, head bobbing. “Cats, rabbits, Snuffles… Do y’know where Xiao-Mei is?”

As if on cue, Xiao-Mei popped out of Mei’s collar.

“Ok, good,” Al said. “One found, uh…. eight to go?”

“Nine,” Mei said. “Remember, last week?”

“Ah, right. Callie. Ok. Ok, we got this.”

Al ran a hand through his hair. He and Mei were good people. Kind people. “Too kind”, his brother would sometimes scoff when visiting their apartment, only to find another cat taking shelter there.

Unlike the last apartment they’d lived in, this one didn’t allow animals, which was a huge problem for Al and Mei. They’d hesitated to sign the year lease, but had eventually been persuaded due to the lower price, larger size (two bedrooms and two bathrooms!), and proximity to the vet office Mei worked at. Fools that they were, they thought they could somehow convince their landlady to allow them to keep their pets (though Mei was highly offended that anyone would ever refer to her beloved Xiao-Mei as a “pet”). After much persuasion, Mrs. Thompson had agreed to let them keep Xiao-Mei. Their other four pets at the time, well, Al had assured his new landlady that they’d given them away. But how could they abandon Cupcake, Ming-Ming, and Snowball, their three adorable cats, and Snuffles, their ever-faithful mutt?

Al and Mei were by no means trouble-makers, at least they didn’t try to be. But desperate times call for desperate measures, and so their rule-breaking days began. It only became more problematic as time went on, and their family nearly doubled as they took in five more animals; three more cats and two rabbits. It was especially difficult since Mei worked as a vet assistant and they both volunteered at the local animal shelter.

 _It’s a miracle we don’t have thirty animals living with us at this point,_  Al thought as he scooped Iris out from under the guestroom bed.

He met up with a frazzled Mei in the hall, who had both rabbits, Basil and Mint, in her arms.

“Our bathroom?”

“Our bathroom,” she confirmed. “Oh, I wish we didn’t have to, they hate being crammed together in there. Poor Mittens is wheezing, he’s so overwhelmed.”

“Hopefully she doesn’t stay long. It’s just an impromptu check-in, after all.”

“Well, we are certainly  _not_  offering her tea or biscuits!” His fiancée said, a true insult coming from Mei.

Ten minutes later, Al and Mei stood by their bathroom door. Slightly panting, Al counted their pets, sans Xiao-Mei, who was hanging onto Mei’s shoulder.

“Mei,” Al said, frowning. “I’m only counting…”

“…Nine,” Mei finished for him. “Who are we…?”

“Pumpkin!” Al said suddenly. He raced into the front room, pulled open the door to the hall closet, and pulled a dozing Pumpkin off the top shelf. How the orange tabby had managed to sleep through all the racket, Al would never know.

“Found him?” Mei called.

“Yep!” Al said, setting Pumpkin into the bathroom with all the other unhappy animals.

“Ok, we should be good then! Snuffles, no barking! And Snowball, play nice!” Mei scolded.

Seeing all ten animals together, with Xiao-Mei still perched on Mei’s shoulder, Al felt slightly overwhelmed. Now that he thought about it, he’d never seen all ten of them together. Granted they’d only had Callie for a week, but still. He closed the bathroom door, so Mei and him (and of course Xiao-Mei) were standing in the bedroom. Xiao-Mei, alone without the other animals to play with or bully, jumped off Mei’s shoulder, likely to go sulk in the pantry, her favorite place in the apartment.

“Mei… maybe this is getting kind of…” Al hesitated, trying to think of how to put his thoughts into words. “…a lot.” Ah, well. Close enough.

Mei put her hands on her hips. “And by that you mean…?”

“Well, we do kinda have a lot of pets. And considering we’ve been here less than three months and all… We’ve taken in five more animals and subsequently gotten two verbal warnings! It’s just… a lot.” He didn’t add what was hanging heavy over both their heads; one more warning and they’d be evicted.

“It’ll- It’ll be fine, Al!” Mei said brightly. “No matter what happens. Even if we have to find a new home.”

“Anywhere’s home with you,” Al said, leaning in for a kiss.

“You’re so sappy sometimes,” Mei sighed, leaning in too.

Their kiss was slow, sweet, and… cut short, as loud knocking interrupted them.

Snuffles immediately started barking, Yang and Snowball yowling along.

Mei opened the door to shush them, which Al knew would be useless. Mei seemed to realize this too, as she gave up and shut the door, joining Alphonse on the short walk to the front door.

“It’ll be fine,” Mei said firmly, grabbing onto his hand. Al knew she was also reassuring herself.

“Whatever happens,” Al said. He stopped in the hallway to kiss Mei’s hand. Sure, maybe they would be evicted today. But with Mei by his side, along with Xiao-Mei and their nine pets and counting, he knew they’d truly be alright.

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you enjoyed it! <3


End file.
